Pungent Pug! Pig the Stinker by Aaron Blabey

Pardon my double negatives, but Pig the Pug is not named "Pig" for nothing! Pig the Pug is a PIG and he likes to smell like one!

PIG LIKED TO GET DIRTY. HE FRANKLY WAS RANK.
HIS PAWS COULD BE FRIGHTFUL. HIS FUR OFTEN STANK.

HE WASN'T OFFENDED BY ODOR OR SMELL.
AND IF YOU WEREN'T CAREFUL, HE'D SMELL YOU (Ahem!)
AS WELL.

His co-pet, the meticulous and timid Trevor the wiener pooch, is incensed (pardon the pun)! He watches in disbelief as Pig rolls in garbage and unmentionable muck, and his favorite and most frequent beverage comes from (Yuck!)--the toilet.

Trevor's owner decrees that Pig must be bathed. With trepidation Trevor pulls on his little shower cap and prays that this is not going to be a communal cleansing.

But fat chance of that, as Pig the Stinker turns tail and makes a run for it, sneaking back to sabotage the water supply, stuffing a doggie toy into an important pipe. Who knew Pig the Pug was Pig the plumber?

Fortunately for Trevor and the rest of the family, Pig stinks as a plumber, too, and the ensuing explosion converts his hiding place into a powerful drive-through dogwash and Pig gets a shower he won't soon forget, in Aaron Blabey's latest in his hilarious rhyming Pig the Pug series, Pig the Stinker (Pig the Pug) (Scholastic Press, 2018). There's even a big laugh on the final page, as Pig finds a way to pollute even the bathtub. It seems American kids can't get enough of the Aussie author-illustrator Blabey's perpetually problematic portly pet pug, and no doubt the malodorous Pig the Pug will soon be back in more unseemly adventures in this best-selling series.

Earlier titles about this pugnacious pug are Pig the Pug, Pig the Elf (Pig the Pug), Pig the Winner (Pig the Pug), Pig the Star (Pig the Pug) and Pig the Fibber (Pig the Pug) (read reviews here).

DOWNFALL! Pig the Slob by Aaron Blabey

PIG WAS A PUG, AND I'M SORRY TO SAY,

WAS SHOCKINGLY LAZY, SUCH A SHAMEFUL DISPLAY.

HE LIVED IN A FLAT... HORIZONTAL POSITION,

WHICH LEFT HIM IN TRULY APPALLING CONDITION.

Yes, sadly Pig the Pug (a breed known to be fond of feeding) has become a devoted "couch potato" who lies day and night on the sofa, consuming comestibles constantly, downing mozzarella sticks and pizzas with a candy chaser, and exercising only when he changes the channel on his TV remote.

SWIPE. . . STARE. . . REPEAT!

His mild-mannered co-dog and sometimes friend Trevor, a timid but trim Dachshund, repeatedly warns him that he should change his ways, get off his fat bottom, and do some jogging. But the aptly-named Pig only grows more gross, and his sofa is more of the same, piled high with wrappers, paper cups, drinking straws, and assorted disgusting gnawed-upon bits of fast food.

HIS REPLY WAS QUITE TART.

HE SIMPLY SAID "NO," AND UNLEASHED A FART!

But Mother Nature, particularly as represented in the tensile strength of their apartment's flooring, has her limits, and in time nature follows its course (of course). The floorboards under Pig the Pug's sofa begin to fail, groaning and splintering and finally exploding beneath him, dumping Pig unceremoniously somewhere in the cellar with other disgruntled tenants. Luckily, Pig the Pug's well-developed avoirdupois serves well to soften his descent.

Will Pig the Pug ever change his greedy ways?

Well, sort of, in the noted Aussie humorist author-illustrator's Pig the Slob (Pig the Pug) (Scholastic Press, 2020.

Pig the Pug may work at physical conditioning diligently for a while, but in Aaron Blabey's laugh-out-loud picture books of this odd couple of dogs, Pig seems always to find, er, a new "avenue" for his greediness, much to the amusement of youngsters of preschool and primary grades. Blabey's best-selling rhyming tales of his odd pair of dogs include his trick-or-treat tale, Pig the Monster (Pig the Pug), his Christmas story, Pig the Elf (Pig the Pug), his Pig the Stinker (Pig the Pug), Pig the Tourist (Pig the Pug), Pig the Fibber (Library Edition) (Pig the Pug), and Pig the Winner (Pig the Pug). Couch potatoes and sofa snackers will relish these tasty tales of Trevor and especially Pig, who always gets his, um, just desserts! With plenty of titters and giggles along the way, Aaren Blabey's theme, that being greedy often leaves us needy, finds its mark.

Greed is NOT Good! Pig the Elf by Aaron Blabey

Dear Santa,
May I please have something nice for Christmas?
--From Trevor
P.S. I love you so much!

Trevor, the humble little dachshund, has penned a modest little letter to Santa. But that other dog in the household is something else again!

Pig the Pug's Christmas list is a bit more... shall we say, extensive?

He'd written his list.
And he'd asked for a lot,
But Santa takes orders,
So why the heck not?

Pig is a pug who only wants one thing--MORE!

Pig's list is long--yards and yards long--with wishes for everything from a unicorn (real, not fake) to longer legs. And when Trevor dutifully points out that Santa won't come until they are abed, Pig is having none of his silly Christmas Eve rules.

"Sleep is for fools!
Sleep is for losers!
I won't go to bed
With the rest of you snoozers!

Pig the Pug stands guard by the twinkling tree, vowing to see that he gets his due. But the wait is tedious and Pig nods off a bit, waking to find a portly old guy depositing gifts in two equal piles, one labeled "Trevor" and one labeled "Pig." Pig the Pug in indignant!

"I asked for MORE!" shouted Pug,
Sounding very unkind.
Then he nipped poor old Santa's
Big rosy behind!

Santa tries to make his escape up the chimney, but Pig is pugnacious, his jaws clamped on Santa's derriere all the way to the rooftop sleigh. Santa orders his reindeer into the air, and they leap upward with Pig still dangling from the, er, rear.

Pig's selfish greed has indeed gotten him once more into a regrettable situation, in Aaron Blabey's Christmas cautionary tale, Pig the Elf (Pig the Pug) (Scholastic Press, 2017). Will Pig cool his ardor for acquisitiveness in the cold polar air, or will he meet his long overdue downfall this time? Author Blabey has just the right ending in store for his greedy pug pup, and kids will giggle with glee at the irony of Pig's comeuppance, (although secretly they may hope that Pig the Pug won't totally reform before the next book is written). Blabey's jolly quatrains rhyme their way merrily through this little morality tale, while his illustrations are just as over-the-top hilarious as ever, with both front and back endpapers fittingly filled with Pig's avaricious wish list.

Other popular picture books about Pig are Pig the Pug, Pig the Winner (Pig the Pug), and Pig the Fibber.

Revenge of the Underdog! Pig the STAR by Aaron Blabey

DOGGY STARZ
PET PHOTOGRAPHS

Trevor and Pig
Had a big photo shoot.
They wore little costumes.
They really looked cute.

Pig the pugnacious pug and his timid housemate, Trevor the dachshund, are back! Pig the Pug is just as obnoxious as ever as he pencils himself for all the sittings on the photographer's call sheet. But even the timorous Trevor gets into the spirit of the glamour shots as he giggles at himself dressed as Elvis Prestley.

But Pig the Pug pushes Trevor aside and mounts the pedestal as the King of Rock 'n' Roll. He hogs all the costumes, posing as the Mona Lisa in Renaissance gown, Tarzan in a leopard skin loincloth, Madonna in her metallic bustier, and in burly rapper gear, and insults little Trevor, calling him sausage, salami, and frankfurter!

Yes, Pig ruled the photos.
He hogged every shot.
He whispered to Trevor,
I'm IN, and you're NOT!"

But playing to his strength, Trevor turns the tables and dons a hot dog costume.

Then something happened
That changed the whole shoot.
The man with the camera said,
That dog is CUTE!"

As always, author-illustrator Aaron Blabey celebrates the triumph of the underdog, in his latest, Pig the Star (Pig the Pug) (Scholastic Press, 2018). Trevor has his moment in the limelight, and Pig the would-be star falls from fame, in another delightful revenge of the nerd doggy tale by Aussie author Blabey. In this just-published sequel in his doggy series, Blabey's rhyming quatrains tickle young readers' funnybones, and his over-the-top illustrations of the predictable bug-eyed bully Pig the Pug do not disappoint!

Other books in this series include Pig the PugPig the Elf (Pig the Pug) and Pig the Elf (Pig the Pug). (read reviews here)

Winning, Winning, Winning! Pig the (Pug) Winner by Aaron Blabey

Yes, Pig was a winner.
He just had to win.
And nothing would stop him.
Oh, where to begin?

You can't win 'em all, says the old saw? "Win some, lose some, they say?

Not in Pug's book!

Believe it or not,
He was quite hard to beat.
And the reason was simple...
Yes, Pug was a cheat.

Pig the Pug is not an only dog. His housemate is a gentle dachshund named Trevor, a long-suffering pooch in more ways than one. Pug competes over everything--toys and treats and time on lap--and in a race, he's not above planting a well-placed hind foot in the face of his competitor. He's worse than a sore loser; in his mind he never loses. And if he is not declared the winner, he pitches a tantrum until the real winner gets tired of the fit and hands over the prize. Of course, Pug wastes no time in starting to boast he's the real winner again. Winning is not the best thing; it's the only thing!

Poor Trevor tries to suggest that they can play just for fun, but Pig has only one answer:

"IT AIN'T FUN TILL I'VE WON!"

And one day even eating becomes an Olympic event.

When their dishes are filled with their doggy dinners, Trevor begins to eat daintily, but Pig wolfs his food, determined to be the first to finish.

He gobbles his kibble!

Pig swallows his sausages whole hog without bothering to savor a morsel, and unfortunately he bites off more than he can chew.

He swallows his whole bowl!

It's little Trevor to the rescue with the dachshund version of the Heimlich Maneuver. Just as he's turning blue, Pig gasps and begins to breathe again.

Has Pig the Pug learned his lesson? Will he finally lose his obsession with winning? Young readers will hope not after laughing their way through Aaron Blabey's Pig the Winner (Pig the Pug) (Scholastic Books, 2017). Pig the Pug is the kind of protagonist we love to hate, and readers will be rooting to read Trevor's next triumph. Author-illustrator Aaron Blabey's Pig is definitely a winner in the picture book trade, beginning with his recent Pig the Pug (see review here), and there are two more in this series waiting in the wings in Australia in which young American readers can anticipate the egotistical Pig's getting another jolly comeuppance. Says Kirkus Reviews, "The goggle-eyed cartoon illustrations are fun, funny, and appealingly grotesque in their exaggerated goofiness, and they are a good match for the rhyming text."

Not All It's Cracked Up To Be! Thelma the Unicorn by Aaron Blabey

Fairy Tales can come true,
It can happen to you!

At least that's what Thelma the Pony thinks.

Thelma felt forlorn.

You see, she wished with all her heart to be a unicorn.

Although Otis the Mule thinks the stocky little pony is perfect just the way she is, Thelma has bigger dreams. And one day it happened.

She saw it.
A carrot on the ground.

She tied it to her nose.

And without the wave of a fairy wand or a single bibbidy boppidy boo, Thelma is transformed. Upon her head is a spiraling, sparkly horn, her coat is pink, and her tail is long and silvery. She is a beautiful UNICORN.

And soon Thelma is living the glittery life of a celebrity idol. The fame of her beauty and charm spreads worldwide. Crowds follow wherever she goes. She has a worldwide fan base who greet her with banners that read

OMG! I 💖 YOU!

Thelma The Unicorn tours the world, making appearances before her adoring public, sailing the seven seas on her cruise ship, The Fairy Princess. Throngs await her at every port, swooning at her beauty and begging for her sparkly autograph. Fans await her everywhere, from early morn till midnight. It's great!

Until... it's NOT!

Thelma realizes that it's all a bit too much.

So much fame was kinda tricky, too.

You see, her fans were mad for her. They'd chase her everywhere she went.

It never ever stopped.

Thelma realizes that there's no escape from her fame. She's no longer herself; it's like her admirers own her! They are her FANS, so they feel entitled to follow her every move.

One dark night, she felt quite sad, this famous little pony.

She said, "I thought that I'd feel great..., but all I feel is lonely."

Heavy lies the head that wears the horn. Thelma finds it lonely at the top. There's only thing to do, and Thelma does it. Off comes the magic carrot, and Thelma the glamorous unicorn is no more. It's back to being an ordinary pudgy pony with good ol' Otis waiting to keep her company, in Aaron Blabey's little picture book parable of ditching the Disney delusion of fame, Thelma the Unicorn (Scholastic Press, 2018). Like Blabey's popular character Pig The Pug, Thelma longs for fame, but finds it folly, with artist Blabey providing a plenty of comic scenes along the way as Thelma flees her fans and returns to savor the simple life. Unlike the hopelessly self-absorbed Pig the Pug, though, Thelma emerges a reformed and more lovable character, and with her big smile and googly eyes intact, Thelma returns to her roots as artist Blabey's lovable illustrations poke fun at the glow of the glitterati.

Blabey's other books are Pig the Pug, Pig the Winner (Pig the Pug), Pig the Star (Pig the Pug), Pig the Fibber, and Pig the Elf (Pig the Pug). (See reviews here).

Pig The Pug--Deported! Pig the Tourist by Aaron Blabey

Pig the Pug has proved to be a pain in the patootie plenty of times!

But his putative owners and his co-pet, the timid and long-suffering dachshund Trevor, somehow put up with his pranks.

PIG WAS A PUG AND I'M SORRY TO SAY,

WHEN HE WENT ON VACATION, HE'D CAUSE GREAT DISMAY.

Sweet little Trevor is happy to travel cheerfuly in his little carrier without a whimper, probably because Pig can't pick on him there.

But Pig the Pug skips the leash to outdo himself in mayhem on several continents, leaving a swath of devastation in his wake, be it Brazil's Carnivale, the Great Pyramid and Sphinx, or the Tower of Pisa, now leaning more than ever.

He chases Queen Liz's Corgis right out of the palace, leaving the Monarch both shaken AND stirred, ALAS!

In the Amazon, Pig scoffs at the signage--"PIRANHAS! BEWARE!

So he dives into the river and gets bitten You-Know-Where!

And, dear readers, his bottom bandaged, truth to tell . . .

PIG THE PUG DOES NOT TRAVEL WELL!

In the awesome Aussie author-illustrator Aaren Blabey's tale of the terrible tourist, Pig the Pug, his Pig the Tourist (Pig the Pug) (Scholastic Press, 2019), this canine miscreant provides sight gags and rollicking rhymes to get the giggles from his many preschool and primary fans, who welcome each new entry in this New York Time's best-selling series. Blabey's latest in his Pig the Pug series is Pig the Monster (Pig the Pug)

The Nearness of You! I Need a Hug by Aaron Blabey

Everybody needs somebody sometime!

But not all bodies are equally... embraceable.

Nevertheless, Porcupine needs a big hug--bad!

"Will you cuddle me, Lou?"

Lou the Rabbit says, "SHOO!"

With the prospect of those prickles, Joe the Bear says "NO," four times in a row.

Porcupine pitches his request to his elk friend Ken.

"NOT again!" says Ken.

"That's not very kind!" complains Porcupine.

But all the critters seem to be beating a hasty retreat, page left. What's their problem now?

WAIT! What is that, slithering into the frame, page right?

"Gosh, All I wanted was a kiss," hisses Snake.

It's a match made in heaven, in Aussie author-illustrator Aaron Blabey's new American release, I Need a Hug (Scholastic Press, 2019 Am. ed.). Blabey's trademark googly-eyed critters have been cracking up kids Down Under for quite some time, and this new edition comes just in time to join our Valentine's Day affection selection. After all, snakes are great at hugging, and porcupines have to take their hugs when they can get them, in Blabey's comical conclusion to this delightfully predictable tale. Aaron Blabey is also the best-selling author of his Pig the Pug and sequels Pig the Winner (Pig the Pug), Pig the Fibber (Pig the Pug) Pig the Star (Pig the Pug) and Christmas comedy, Pig the Elf (Pig the Pug)(reviews here).

And for more prickly porcupine love problems, share this one with Laurie Isop's How Do You Hug a Porcupine?

Pants On Fire! Pig The Fibber by Aaron Blabey

PIG WAS A PUG,
AND I'M SORRY TO SAY.

HE'D OFTEN TELL LIES
TO GET HIS OWN WAY.

Pig is a pug who wants it all, and he'll say anything to get it. Fibs roll off his tongue like water off a duck's back. And when faced with the truth, he'll always deny it.

HE WAS AWFULLY CLEVER.

WHEN PIG GOT IN TROUBLE,
HE'D ALWAYS BLAME TREVOR.

Pig's co-pet Trevor the dachshund is too timid to cross the burly Pig and mostly tries to make himself scarce when Pig misbehaves. But somehow Pig often manages to make Trevor the fall guy. Pig chews up a bridal gown right out of its box, and once more the blame goes to poor little Trevor.

But then Pug spots a big bag of dog treats hidden carefully on a high shelf, and immediately begins to plan his next caper. He's got to get the house to himself for a while to carry out this maneuver, and the means, it seems, is right there!

AND WITH THAT HE LET OUT A RIP.
IT WAS STINKY AND GRIM.

THEN HE POINTED TO TREVOR
AND SAID "IT WAS HIM!"

Trevor is quickly leashed and led hastily out for a good "airing," and Pig goes into his plan of action, visions of gobbled treats dancing in his head. He pulls up a chair and jiggles the treat bag toward the edge of the shelf. But there's something on top of the treats that Pig can't quite see--a big, heavy, pink bowling ball!

BONK! CLONK!

The punishment fits the crime, and Pig appears to be a reformed former fibber, in the just published American edition of Aaron Blabey's Pig the Pug Fibber (Pig the Pug) (Scholastic, 2018), joining the other popular titles in this slapstick series. Pig is prone to relapse in his progress toward being a good co-pet, and we can only hope there are more Pig the Pug stories ahead by Aussie author-illustrator Aaron Blabey. With their hilariously portrayed comic characters and rhythmic rhyming couplets, these stories are great for reading aloud or for newly independent readers. For other books in this series, see my reviews here.

Mine! Mine! Mine! Pig and Pug by Aaron Blabey

PIG WAS A PUG

AND I'M SORRY TO SAY,

HE WAS GREEDY AND SELFISH

IN MOST EVERY WAY.

Pig is a pug with a problem--two problems, really.

First, he has a personality problem; he is an overfed, self-centered dog who wants it ALL. He guards his doggy bowl of kibble like a dragon guards his hoard.

But second, Pig has a family problem. He is not an only dog. He shares the household with Trevor, an easy-going dachshund who wants his share of kibble and the dog toys Pig hoards. With a friendly grin, Trevor sociably tries to point out that Pug might have more fun if the two of them could play with the balls, chew bones, and squeaky toys together. But true to his name, Pig refuses to share.

He gathers their toys in a tipsy tower all together--

Then plops down atop them to snarl at poor Trevor.

"THERE!" SHOUTED PIG.

"YOU WON'T GET MY LOOT!

IT'S MINE! MINE! MINE!

SO WHY DON'T YOU SCOOT?"

But Pig's pride goes before his fall, as his excess of stuff topples and tips him right out the window. Pig survives his downfall, but not without some pain, and in true happy-ending style, seems to have learned his lesson, in Aaron Blabey's just-published Pig the Pug (Scholastic Press, 2016). Pugs are popular pets and popular protagonists in picture books these days, and in this little parable of pet cupidity, author-illustrator Blabey's bouncy quatrains and comic portrayal of a covetous canine who gets his comeuppance presses home his premise with a vengeance. Kids will appreciate Pig's well-deserved pratfall and perhaps get the message that sharing is caring--and safer, too!

Pair this one with another story of a pet pug who wants what he wants, in the Theodor Seuss Geisel-award-winning Mary Sullivan's Treat (see review here.)

Abducted by Aliens! Bad Guys (Alien VS Bad Guys) by Aaron Blabey

WE HAVE TO GET OUT OF HERE!

How? HE'S AN ALIEN!

Marmalade ISN'T a mad scientist who tried to destroy the world. He's an enormous hostile alien life-form....

And we're trapped inside its space station on the moon WITHOUT A ROCKET.

Yes, the Bad Guys gang are not in the best of positions, vis a vis, er, staying alive! Actually, they're somewhere in outer space in a capsule....

Are they doomed?

But little Legs has a plan. There is an escape pod, and all he has to do is decipher a bunch of unknown languages, punch in the right coordinates, and ....

FIGURE IT OUT!

But along the way they have to deal with the deadly ...

KDJFLOERHGCOINWERUHCGLEIRWFHEKLWJFHXALHW?!

But then little Legs pulls it off! He figures out the code to the escape pod and they blast off back to earth. But things on earth don't look right. Where are they?

OOPS. Could Legs have set the correct coordinates for Earth, but... sent them back to

65 MILLION BC?

It's a total celebration of the joy of reading (and of super silliness) in Aaron Blabey's The Bad Guys in Alien vs Bad Guys (The Bad Guys 6), the latest installment in the ditsy, screwy, and altogether ludicrous adventures in the author's goofy series. Not since the first Captain Underpants books have beginning chapter readers had such an occasion for the appreciation of the absurd, with this series of graphic novels illustrated by the author. Aaron Blabey is also the author-illustrator of the wonderfully zany picture book series which begins with Pig the Pug (see reviews here).

KOALA PRIDE! Don't Call Me BEAR! by Aaron Blabey

G'Day, my name is WARREN,
and I've got something to share...

JUST BECAUSE I AM FURRY
DOESN'T MEAN I'M A BEAR.

Warren is having an identity crisis and is, tell the truth, a bit surly, and with good reason. His sign says it all:

NOT

A

BEAR

(Koala!)

Even the venerable Captain Cook was aware of koalas' proper place in the animal kingdom.

Bears are mammals and Koalas are marsupials! (Get it?)

Polar bears are seen in Canada, and the U.S. has grizzlies out the wazoo, but there are NO bears in Australia (except in a zoo).

I'm sorry if I shout!
I'm not a bear!
I'm really NOT.
And you need to
SORT IT OUT!

A persistent misnomer has Warren the Koala on a rant, in Aussie author Aaren Blabey's little lesson on marsupial nomenclature, Don't Call Me Bear! (Scholastic Press, 2019 [Am. Ed.]). Blabey's best-selling Pig the Pug stories have made his jolly rhyming tales and googly-eyed rival pets Pig the pugnacious pug and Trevor the timid dachshund America's favorite pet pair (read reviews here), and preschool/primary readers will find this story of Australia's cutest marsupial full of Blabey's hilarious illustrations and quirky quatrains. As Kirkus jokes, "Modestly informational and totally fun."

Santa's Snack! Cookiesaurus Christmas by Amy Fellner Dominy

Santa will be here soon.

Look! The cookie plate is empty!

The big guy should have the best cookie to get him home to the North Pole, and that means me, Cookiesaurus Rex!

Tyrannosaurus Rex is accustomed to being at the top of the food chain, and he believes he and only he should be served up for Santa on his Christmas Eve circuit of deliveries. But when Cookiesaurus plants himself in Santa's plate, he's summarily removed!

It's not fair! Dinosaurs have Christmas spirit, too!

But Cookiesaurus can't seem to convince everyone that there's a place for dinos as Santa's snack. The Baker certainly doesn't seem to think so! He scoops up Star Cookie and plops him onto the plate in place of Cookiesaurus, but Cookie slyly removes him. When Baker gives Bell the spot of honor, Cookiesaurus accidentally on purpose knocks over Santa's glass of milk all over Bell. Sorry, Soggy, old chap!

But Baker has other alternatives more appropriate for Santa's snack. Baker cleans up the mess and this timed his spatula scoops up jolly Gingerbread Boy and drops him on Santa's plate.

Cookiesaurus sulks.

WAIT JUST ONE STINKIN' STOMPIN' MINUTE!

But there is a higher calling in store for this apex raptor cookie on the tree, in Amy Fellner Dominy's and Nate Evans' tempting new holiday tale, Cookiesaurus Christmas (Cookiesaurus Rex) (Disney Hyperion, 2018). Who knew that cookies were rivals for a place on Santa's plate? Authors Dominy and Evans have stirred up a tempting Christmas tale with a happy ending and all the toppings that will likely prompt a bit of  cut-out cookie baking for the family tree. Artist AG Ford follows through with detailed tasty illustrations that add to the fun of the festive season. As Kirkus says, "[this] cheeky dino is full of personality and spunk, and his facial expressions are priceless."

For another funny tale of rivalry between Santa's helpers, share this one with Aaron Blabey's popular, Pig the Elf (Pig the Pug).